Sponsored by:
Senator STEVEN V. OROHO
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
Senator LINDA R. GREENSTEIN
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senator Ruiz
SYNOPSIS
Requires Secretary of Higher Education to establish New Jersey STEM Entrepreneur Fellowship Program to support entrepreneurs in STEM fields.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing the New Jersey STEM Entrepreneur Fellowship Program and supplementing Title18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Secretary of Higher Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, shall establish the New Jersey STEM Entrepreneur Fellowship Program in county colleges and four-year institutions of higher education.
b. The secretary shall work in consultation with the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development to fund no less than 20 fellowships, administered by the secretary, which focus on supporting entrepreneurs in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The fellowships may be provided to individuals who have proven to the secretary that they have an idea to create, advance or develop a product in the STEM field which will have a beneficial impact on society and will result in a self-sustaining business in the future.
The fellowships shall be issued for three years each and shall be used primarily to support the entrepreneurs in commercializing the idea and developing a well-structured business.
Priority shall be given to fellowships which are submitted with the support of an incubator supported by the State of New Jersey or any of its public entities.
c. The secretary, in consultation with the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, shall conduct an evaluation of the effectiveness of the New Jersey STEM Entrepreneur Fellowship Program to establish new businesses no later than five years after the approval of the first fellowship.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Secretary of Higher Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, to establish the New Jersey STEM Entrepreneur Fellowship Program in county colleges and four-year institutions of higher education to support entrepreneurs in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. Under the bill, the secretary will fund and administer no less than 20 fellowships. The fellowships may be provided to individuals who have proven to the secretary that they have an idea to create, advance or develop a product in the STEM field which will have a beneficial impact on society and will result in a self-sustaining business in the future. The fellowships will be issued for three years each and will be used primarily to support the entrepreneurs in commercializing the idea and developing a well-structured business.